The Athletic’s James Pearce has revealed the huge fee that Liverpool will have to pay to Bournemouth to sign Milos Kerkez in the summer.
Liverpool, have had a brilliant season in the Premier League with Arne Slot’s side heading to a twentieth top-flight title after opening up a 12-point lead over second-placed Arsenal.
The Reds had a nightmare few days last week as they exited the Champions League at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain and lost the League Cup final to Newcastle United on Sunday.
And now attention has turned to getting over the line in the Premier League, which should be straightforward barring any huge collapse, and who they will sign in the summer.
Their attention will likely focus on defence and attack with midfield and goalkeepers largely covered, while there remains a lot of uncertainty over whether current players will stay or go.
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Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk are all out of contract at the end of the season and there are rumours they could leave.
And Pearce – who has reported on Liverpool for many years – has analysed where Liverpool are short and revealed how much they could have to pay for Bournemouth left-back Kerkez.
Pearce wrote in The Athletic:
‘If Trent Alexander-Arnold joins Real Madrid on a free transfer, there will be a huge creativity void to fill. Conor Bradley is an accomplished deputy, but the 21-year-old’s injury issues are a concern and another right-back would need to be signed.
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‘Strengthening at left-back is also on the agenda. Milos Kerkez, 21, is highly regarded, but Bournemouth would want around three times the £15.5m they paid AZ for the Hungary international in 2023. Ajax’s Jorrel Hato, 19, is another option.
‘At centre-half, so much hinges on whether Van Dijk pens an extension. Despite the long-standing optimism that the skipper will stay put, he is adamant that his future remains up in the air as talks continue.
‘Then there’s his defensive partner, Konate, approaching the final year of his contract with no sign of a breakthrough in negotiations, and Gomez, who came close to leaving last summer, recovering from surgery on his hamstring. You could make a strong argument that Liverpool need another centre-half even if Van Dijk commits beyond his 34th birthday in July.’
Bayer Leverkusen right-back is another player Liverpool are reportedly interested in but former Man Utd chief scout Mick Brown doubts they will replace Alexander-Arnold with the Netherlands international.
Brown told Football Insider: “Liverpool are looking to sign a new right-back. But I don’t think Fimpong will be they player they bring in. If Liverpool are sticking with a back four, I don’t see where he fits.
“He’s a very, very attack-minded wing-back, but there are questions about him defensively. I’m not sure how well that would work at right-back in the Premier League, and I’m sure that’s something these clubs are also taking into account.
“He had an impressive season when they won the league, but I don’t think he’s anything special. I’m not convinced Man United will be too keen on him either.
“I know they’ve looked at him and he’s a name on a list, but only in that he’s a right-wing-back playing in Europe, so it would be strange if they hadn’t looked at him.
“I’d be surprised if he was their first choice, we’ll put it that way.”